1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to utensils for retaining objects in a liquid bath. More specifically, the invention relates to utensils that can be employed to retain frozen objects in a liquid bath to facilitate defrosting.
2. Description of related art including information disclosed under 37 CFR §§1.97 and 1.98
The water submersion food thawing method allows frozen food to thaw quickly but not always thoroughly. When the density of the food is less than the density of the water in the container or sink, it forces the food to float resulting in partially thawed food.
When an object having a density lower than water, such as a frozen food item, is placed in a water bath, it will rise to the top of the water. This results in the object being only partially exposed to the bath.
Placing a heavier item on top of the floating object will hold the object down. However, the object will still only be partially exposed to the liquid because the heavier object that was placed on top is now covering parts of the object intended to be fully exposed to the liquid in the bath. For example, during the food preparation process, it is recommended for quicker thaw time to place frozen food in a water bath. Placing a 6 ounce piece of frozen chicken in a sink filled with 1.5 liter of water will result in the piece of chicken rising to the top of the water surface with only the bottom part being exposed to the water and the top part out of the water. Placing a heavier object such as a plate, bowl, pot or pan etc., on top of the piece of chicken will hold it down in the water bath. However, parts of the chicken will be covered by the heavier object, which will result in the chicken to still only be partially exposed to the water. The defrosting process will be uneven and take longer, increasing the risk of bacteria growth.
Presently there is no invention to assist in keeping food fully submerged during the thawing process. It is to the solution of these and other problems that the present invention is directed.